Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki to meet with UH leaders

What: Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki will meet with University of Hawaiʻi Interim President David Lassner and other leaders to discuss the new VetSuccess on Campus program at the university. They will also discuss the historic Post-9/11 GI Bill and collaborative initiatives to help student Veterans and their dependents graduate, reach education goals and find meaningful employment.

VetSuccess on Campus, a collaborative program between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and colleges and universities around the country, is designed to provide student Veterans a direct link to VA as they transition from their military experience. The program connects student Veterans with a counselor on campus to help them with career exploration and access to VA benefits and services. VA recently announced the expansion of the VetSuccess on Campus (VSOC) program to an additional 62 new locations in August – including the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa – bringing the number of VSOC schools across the country to 94.

The Post-9/11 GI Bill is the most extensive educational assistance opportunity since the passage of the original GI Bill in 1944. The historic bill pays tuition and fees on behalf of Veterans or eligible dependents directly to the school in which they are enrolled. Eligible participants receive a monthly housing allowance and up to $1,000 annually for books and supplies. The program allows eligible service members to transfer benefits to their spouses and/or children. Since its inception in 2009, the Post-9/11 GI Bill has helped more than about one million individuals go to school. VA pays $27.6 million per day in education programs. For more information visit www.gibill.va.gov.

The University of Hawaii System is composed of 3 baccalaureate campuses, 7 community colleges, and dozens of educational, training and research centers across the Hawaiian Islands. As the public system of higher education in Hawai‘i, UH offers opportunities as unique and diverse as its island home. Founded in 1907, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is the UH System’s flagship campus. A research university of international standing, it offers a comprehensive array of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees attract students and faculty from across the nation and the world to take advantage of its unique educational and research opportunities.